Fishline bobber



March 17, 1953 A. P. SOWA FISHLINE BOBBER 2 SHEETSSHEET 2 Filed Oct. 20, 1948 \NVENTOR ADAM- SowA BY v 15. 2h

ATTORNEY I ates with the edge of the housing I 6 at the aperture IS in order to maintain the spring in the extended position. The lower portion of the trigger 20 may be referred to as the cocking portion 23, and the portion of the trigger which is within the confines of the chamber i? as shown in the drawing may be referred to as the stabilizing portion 24. It will be readily understood that tension applied to the line 14 and resisted by tension on the line 14a will cause the stabilizing portion 24 to move in a counterclockwise direction with respect to the housing as seen in the drawings. Such rotation will continue until the engaging portion 22 and the upper etxremity 25 of the stabilizing portion contact the side of the chamber I1, and thereby prevent further rotation. When such contact has been eifected, considerable force is generated which urges the engaging portion 22 and the support into cooperating relationship. The self-cocking feature results from the eye i being positioned at a point remote from a line projected along the axis of the stabilizing portion 24 and on the opposite side of that axis from the engaging point 22.

With the device as shown in Figure l, the small movements of the fish at the bait cause the engaging portion 22 to gradually work into a position in which it snaps free of the edge of the housing and permits the tension of the spring 28 to be directly applied to the fish-line Ma, thus securely setting the hook.

Referring to Figure 2, a bobber is shown constructed substantially like the device illustrated in Figure 1, but in which an adjustment has been made causing the bobber to remain in approximately a horizontal position. This adjustment consists in moving the float H axially with respect to the housing It, the adjustability being achieved by providing a sliding engagement between the two parts. If the float I! illustrated in Figure 2 were to be moved to the left, the position of the center of gravity of the device with respect to the center of buoyancy would then tend to cause the bobber to move to the upright position illustrated in Figure 1. The position of the float along the housing required to cause the device to remain in the position shown in Figure 2 will be determined by the weight of the fish-line I 4a between the bobber and the hook, and also the amount of weight which is used as a sinker, together with the weight of the fish-hook and bait. Any pulling at the bait by the fish will of course tend to cause the bobber to tip into an upright position and thus act to notify the user of the presence of the fish.

The action of the trigger 20 with the bobber disposed as shown in Figure 2 is slightly difierent from the action when the bobber is riding in the upright position shown in Figure 1. As a small pull is brought to bear upon the line Hia by the fish as it disturbs the bait, the cooking portion 23 of the trigger is deflected downwardly. This slight change in curvature of the wire causes the engaging portion 22 to slightly alter its angular relationship with the stabilizing portion 25. This alteration in angular relationship causes the engaging portion 22 to tend to assume a slight slope with respect to its associated supporting surface. This slope urges the engaging portion to slip off the support and thereby release the trigger. It will be noted that the curvature of the cocking portion 23 is such that the attaching eye I5 is placed a a point considerably below the center of buoyancy of the device. The total weight of the fish-line Ma together with the weight of the sinkers, bait, and hook is therefore applied below the center of buoyancy and tends to stabilize th device in "roll and thereby insure that the direction of the action of the force on the line I ia remains as shown with respect to the location of the engaging portion 22.

It will be noted that the device shown in Figure 2 is provided with a connecting line between the attaching eyes [3 and I5. This connecting line is designated as Nb and it is preferably a portion of the same line which extends from the pole of the user down to the fish-hook. The bobber I0 is thus connected in what may be called a "shunt" relationship with the section of the lin Mb, which is selected to be of such length that tension between the sections !4 and Ma will not over-extend the spring 58 before the length Mb is drawn taut.

The device operating in the position shown in Figure 2, an action takes place which tends to increase the hook-setting action of the energystorage system. As the trigger 20 is released, it begins an inward movement under the urging of the spring l8 guided by the walls of the chamber ll. As it proceeds along such inward movement, a point is reached where the lower portion of the aperture l9 contacts the lower side of the cocking portion 22. As the trigger continues on its inward movement after such contact has been established, a counterclockwise moment is applied to the trigger due to the tendency of the cooking portion 23 of the trigger to become aligned with the housing as it moves inwardly, which tends to cause the connecting eye IE to move upwardly and thus increase the hooksetting action of the spring. It will be appreciated that as soon as the fish has begun to nibble at the bait, the bobber assembly will tend to assume an upright position and the action of the spring moving axially along the chamber I! will be applied substantially in a direction parallel to the line [4a.

The particular device which has been shown in the accompanying drawings and described herein is for illustrative purposes only and is not to be taken as a limitation on the scope of the appended claims. It is the inventors intention to claim the entire scope of the invention to which he is entitled in view of the prior art.

I claim:

1. A fish-hook setting mechanism comprising: first line-connecting means, spring means having one end connected to said first line-connecting means, a housing connected to said first line-connecting means and having a shoulder thereon remote from the connected end of said spring means. a flexible wir trigger attached at one end to the free end of said spring means and having an ofiset forming an abutment at an intermediate point adapted to cooperate with said shoulder for holding the force of said spring means, said trigger having freedom to move away from said shoulder to disengage said offset abutment therefrom. and second line-connecting means, said second lineconnecting means being formed on the opposite end of said trigger from said spring, said abutment being disposed at a distance from a line connecting th ends of said trigger and adapted to engage said shoulder on the opposite side of said trigger from said line.

2. A fish-hook setting mechanism comprising: first line-connecting means, spring means having one end connected to said first line-connecting means, a housing connected to said first lineconnecting means and having a shoulder thereon remote from the connected end of said spring means, a flexible wire trigger attached at one end to the free end of said spring means and having an offset forming an abutment at an intermediate point adapted to cooperate with said shoulder for holding the force of said spring means, said trigger having freedom to move away from said shoulder to disengage said offset abutment therefrom, and second line-connecting means, said second line-connecting means being formed on the opposite end of said trigger from said spring.

ADAM P. SOWA.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

Number 6 UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Bardsley July 16, 1895 Mintzer July 26, 1898 Hymers Oct. 14, 1902 Scott Mar. 7, 1911 Dingwell Feb. 25, 1919 Pennell Jan. 18, 1927 Loehr Aug. 9, 1932 Allison June 18, 1940 

